Elastic bag for artificial respiration apparatus



Jan. 16, 1968 A. s. LAERDAL ELASTIQ BAG FOR'ARTIFICIAL RESPIRATION APPARATUS Filed June 15, 1965 INVENTOR United States Patent 3,363,833 ELASTIC BAG FOR ARTIFICIAL RESPIRATION APPARATUS Asmund Sigurd Laerdal, Stavanger, Norway Filed June 15, 1965, Ser. No. 464,126 Claims priority, application Norway, June 15,1964, 153,648 1 Claim. (Cl. 230-469) The present invention relates to an elastic bag for an artificial respiration apparatus for supplying air or oxygen to the lungs of a patient and adpted to be elastically compressed in a direction transverse to its longitudinal axis. After being compressed, this bag because of its elasticity returns to its original shape and thereby draws into it air or oxygen which during the subsequent compression of the bag is forced into the lungs of the patient.

The elastic bag for such apparatus which were known prior to this invention have the disadvantage that they have considerable dimensions in the uncompressed condition and that they must therefore be kept in special containers for which a physician may not always have sufficient space in his instrument bag.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an elastic bag of the type and for the purpose as mentioned above which may be made of such a small size that it may be easily stored in the instrument bag of a physician. According to the invention, this object is attained by designing the bag so as to permit it to be folded together in its axial direction. When the elastic bag according to the invention is in its folded or collapsed condition, it takes up a relatively small space which only amounts to a fraction of its original volume and it may therefore be stored within a much smaller space than was previously required for storing one of the elastic bags of the usual type.

The elastic bag according to the invention may consist of a central part which may not be folded in its axial direction, and of two outer parts which may be folded into the central part and are tapered from the central part toward their outer ends. This facilitates the operation of folding together or collapsing the bag. According to another feature of the invention, the two outer parts of the elastic bag are provided with constrictions which extend around the entire periphery of these parts. This has the advantage that, after being folded together, the bag will remain in this folded or collapsed condition and will not open up to its full size of its own accord. According to another feature of the invention, this advantage is further enhanced by making the Wall portions of the outer paits which are located between the constrictions of a greater thickness than the wall portions of the constricted parts and also of the central part. This requires a certain amount of force to be exerted in order to overcome the tendency of the outer parts of the bag to remain in their inwardly folded position and to pull these parts out of the central part so that the bag will again have its full s1ze.

The elastic bag according to the invention is provided similarly as the conventional elastic bags with valves at both ends. The central part of the bag is for this purpose designed so as to ensure that, when the bag is in its collapsed position, the two valves will be located within the area which is surrounded by the central part and will thus be protected from being damaged.

The features and advantages of the present invention will become further apparent from the following detailed description thereof which is to be read with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 shows a perspective view of an elastic bag according to the invention which is connected to a face mask;

FIGURE 2 shows a perspective view of the elastic bag according to FIGURE 1 in the collapsed position; while FIGURE 3 shows an axial cross section of the upper part of the elastic bag according to FIGURE 1.

Referring to the drawings, the elastic: bag 1 according to the invention consists of an elastic material, for example, of natural or synthetic rubber or a suitable thermoplastic. It comprises a central part 2 and two outer parts 3 and 4 which are integrally connected thereto. The bag 1 may be made of two equal halves which are firmly secured and sealed to each other at 5 and consist of one half of the central part 2 together with the outer part 2 and of the other half of the central. part 2 together with the other outer part 4.

The diameter of the outer parts 3 and 4 decreases from the central part 2 toward the outer ends and they are provided with peripherally extending constrictions 6, 7 and 8, 9 which are spaced from each other at suitable distances in the axial direction of the expanded bag. The outer ends of the outer parts 3 and 4 are provided With apertures into which valves 13 and 14 are inseited. Valve 13 may be connected to a face mask 15.

If the bag 1 according to FIGURE 1 is compressed in its axial direction, the outer parts 3 and 4 will be folded inwardly at the constrictions 6, 7 and 8, 9. The annular wall portions 16 and 17 are then inwardly bent at an angle of approximately about the edges 18 and 19 into the central part 2, while the annular wall portions 20 and 21 retain their original positions relative to the axis of the axially symmetrical bag 1. During the compression of the bag in its axial direction, the annular wall portions 22 and 23 will likewise be inwardly bent at an angle of approximately 180 about the constrictions 7 and 9. However, when these wall portions are bent beyond a certain dead-center position, they will carry out the further inward movement with a snap action. At the same time, the inwardly bent wall portions 16, 17, 22 and 23 are given a certain tension which insures that the inwardly folded outer bag parts 3 and 4 will be retained in their respective positions within the central bag part 2. It is therefore necessary to apply a certain amount of force in order to overcome the tension of the inwardly bent wall portions 16, 17, 22, and 23 and the dead-center portions between them in order to bend these parts again outwardly so that the bag 1 will return to its expanded operative position, as shown in FIGURE 1.

The constrictions 6 to 9 may also be provided in the form of recessed or projecting corrugations. The bag 1 may in this case be made of a uniform wall thickness.

In its collapsed position, the bag 1 may be stored in a container or pouch, for example, in such a manner that one end of the bag is held by a snap button on the bottom of the container or pouch so as to permit the bag 1 to be opened to its full size by a single manipulation. The gripping force of the snap button may then be slightly stronger than the force which is required for expanding the bag, so that at the end of the expanding movement the elastic bag 1 may be pulled completely out of the container or panel.

Although my invention has been illustrated and described with reference to the preferred embodiment thereof, I wish to have it understood that it is in no way limited to the details of such embodiment but is capable of numerous modifications within the scope of the appended claim.

Having thus fully disclosed my invention, what I claim is:

1. An expansible bag for artificial respiration apparatus, comprising a first ring-shaped part, a second ringshaped part arranged on each end of said first ring-shaped part and concentrically arranged in respect to said first O ring-shaped part and being of a size to fit into said first ring-shaped part, said second ring-shaped part being joined to said first ring-shaped part around its periphery adjacent one side by an elastic portion thereof of reduced wall thickness, said second ring-shaped part being collapsible Within said first ring-shaped part and constructed so as to be retainable therein Without holding means for reducing the axial length of said bag, and means closing each end of said first and second ring-shaped parts, each said second ring-shaped part being connected to said first ring-shaped part by an elastic portion of reduced wall thickness and each being collapsible Within said first ringshaped part for reducing the axial length of the bag, said first ring-shaped part being of thin walled construction for sensing variations of pressure within the bag through the wall, said means closing each end of said first and second ring-shaped parts, comprising a valve closing the outer end of each of said second ring-shaped parts, said second ring-shaped parts being collapsible Within said first ring-shaped parts and being automatically retainable therein upon collapsing to reduce the axial length of the bag.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,833,448 5/1958 Lerner 222-209 2,834,296 5/1958 Neufeld 103-148 2,880,902 4/1959 Owen 220-8 2,886,084 5/1959 Davison 150-.5 3,009,459 11/1961 Ruben 230l69 3,201,111 8/1965 Afton 2151.5

l5 DONLEY I. STOCKING, Pril'nary Examiner.

\VILLIAM L. FREEH, Assistant Examiner. 

1. AN EXPANSIBLE BAG FOR ARTIFICIAL RESPIRATION APPARATUS, COMPRISING A FIRST RING-SHAPED PART, A SECOND RINGSHAPED PART ARRANGED ON EACH END OF SAID FIRST RING-SHAPED PART AND CONCENTRICALLY ARRANGED IN RESPECT TO SAID FIRST RING-SHAPED PART BEING OF A SIZE TO FIT INTO SAID FIRST RING-SHAPED PART, SAID SECOND RING-SHAPED PART BEING JOINED TO SAID FIRST RING-SHAPED PART AROUND ITS PERIPHERY ADJACENT ONE SIDE BY AN ELASTIC PORTION THEREOF OF REDUCED WALL THICKNESS, SAID SECOND RING-SHAPED PART BEING COLLAPSIBLE WITHIN SAID FIRST RING-SHAPED PART AND CONSTRUCTED SO AS TO BE RETAINABLE THEREIN WITHOUT HOLDING MEANS FOR FEDUCING THE AXIAL LENGTH OF SAID BAG, AND MEANS CLOSING EACH END OF SAID FIRST AND SECOND RING-SHAPED PARTS, EACH SAID SECOND RING-SHAPED PART BEING CONNECTED TO SAID FIRST RING-SHAPED PART BY AN ELASTIC PORTION OF REDUCED WALL THICHNESS AND EACH BEING COLLAPSIBLE WITHIN SAID FIRST RINGSHAPED PART FOR REDUCING THE AXIAL LENGTH OF THE BAG, SAID FIRST RING-SHAPED PART BEING OF THIN WALLED CONSTRUCTION FOR SENSING VARIATIONS OF PRESSURE WITHIN THE BAG THROUGH FOR WALL, SAID MEANS CLOSING EACH END OF SAID AND SECOND RING-SHAPED PARTS, COMPRISING A VALVE CLOSING THE OUTER END OF EACH OF SAID SECOND RING-SHAPED PARTS, SAID SECOND RING-SHAPED PARTS BEING COLLAPSIBLE WITHIN SAID FIRST RING-SHAPD PARTS AND BEING AUTOMATICALLY RETAINABLE THEREIN UPON COLLAPSING TO REDUCE THE AXIAL LENGTH OF THE BAG. 